Éclair

{{redirect|Chocolate Eclair|the Canadian drama film|Chocolate Eclair (film){{!}}Chocolate Eclair (film)}}

{{Infobox food

| name = Éclair

| image = Eclair Chocolat LMDC 2.png

| caption = Chocolate-glazed éclairs by La Maison du Chocolat

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| country = France

| national_cuisine = French cuisine

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| type = Pastry

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| main_ingredient = Choux pastry, flavored cream filling, icing

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An éclair ({{IPAc-en|lang|ɪ|ˈ|k|l|ɛər|audio=LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-éclair.wav}} {{respell|ih|KLAIR}}{{Cite web|title=eclair|url=https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/eclair|url-status=live|website=Oxford Learner's Dictionary|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140619025953/http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com:80/definition/english/eclair |archive-date=2014-06-19 }} or {{IPAc-en|eɪ|ˈ|k|l|ɛər}} {{respell|ay|KLAIR}},{{Cite web|title=éclair|url=https://www.macmillandictionary.com/pronunciation/british/eclair|url-status=live|website=Macmillan Dictionary|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131130010708/http://www.macmillandictionary.com:80/pronunciation/british/eclair |archive-date=2013-11-30 }} {{IPA|fr|eklɛːʁ|lang|LL-Q150 (fra)-Aemines3-éclair.wav}}; {{lit|lightning}}) is a pastry made with choux dough filled with a cream and topped with a flavored icing. The dough, which is the same as that used for profiteroles, is typically piped into an oblong shape with a pastry bag and baked until it is crisp and hollow inside. Once cool, the pastry is filled with custard ({{lang|fr|crème pâtissière}}), whipped cream or chiboust cream, then iced with fondant icing.Montagné, Prosper, Larousse gastronomique: the new American edition of the world's greatest culinary encyclopedia, Jenifer Harvey Lang, ed., New York: Crown Publishers, 1988, p. 401 {{ISBN|978-0-517-57032-6}} Other fillings include pistachio- and rum-flavored custard, fruit-flavored fillings or chestnut purée. When the icing is caramel, the dessert may be called a {{lang|fr|bâton de Jacob}}{{Harv|Montagné|1961|loc=Éclair|p=365}} ({{lit|Jacob's staff}}). A similar pastry in a round rather than oblong shape is called a religieuse.

Etymology

The word comes from the French {{Lang|fr|éclair}}, meaning 'flash of lightning', so named because it is eaten quickly (in a flash);[http://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/academie8/%C3%A9clair Éclair] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140104213029/http://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/academie8/%C3%A9clair |date=2014-01-04 }}, Dictionnaire de l'Académie française, 8th edition however some believe that the name is due to the glistening of the frosting resembling lightning.{{cite web |url=http://www.lexicolatry.com/2015/05/eclair-why-is-it-named-after-lightning.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160802155529/http://www.lexicolatry.com/2015/05/eclair-why-is-it-named-after-lightning.html |url-status=usurped |archive-date=August 2, 2016 |title=Éclair - Why is It Named After Lightning? |website=www.lexicolatry.com |access-date=1 April 2022}}

History

The éclair originated during the 19th century in Lyon,{{Cite web |date=2021-05-10 |title=Les éclairs : leur histoire et leur fabrication chez MBC |url=https://www.ma-boulangerie-cafe.fr/2021/05/10/les-%C3%A9clairs-leur-histoire-et-leur-fabrication-chez-mbc/ |access-date=2023-02-01 |website=Boulangerie Pâtisserie artisanale |language=fr-FR}} France where it was called {{lang|fr|pain à la Duchesse}}{{Harv|Gouffé|1873|p=288}} ('Duchess-style bread') or {{lang|fr|petite duchesse}} ('little duchess') until 1850.{{Harv|Montagné|1961|loc=Duchesses|p=357}} The word is first attested both in English and in French in the 1860s.Oxford English Dictionary, 1861. Petit Larousse, 1863.{{harv|Gouffé|1873|p=288}} "On a changé, depuis une vingtaine d'années, le nom de ces gâteaux [pains à la duchesse] : on les désigne actuellement sous le nom d'éclairs."

Variants

Dunkin' Donuts markets Long John donuts as eclairs in the United States.{{cite web |url=https://www.dunkindonuts.com/en/menu/donuts/product-donuts-id1001201|title=Dunkin Donuts Menu|website=dunkindonuts.com}}

National Eclair Day is celebrated on June 22 in the U.S.{{cite news |url=https://www.courant.com/ctnow/food-drink/hc-ctnow-national-eclair-day-20220622-iedtp44c5ffp5fiqyh43zkfhky-story.html|title=Eclairs with a twist: Visit these Greater Hartford bakeries on National Eclair Day|website=Hartford Courant|date= June 22, 2022}}

In Brazil, a dessert resembling a miniature {{Lang|pt|éclair}} is known as a {{Lang|pt|Carolina}}.{{Citation needed|date=October 2024}}

Photo gallery

File:Eclairs at Fauchon in Paris.jpg|Éclairs at Fauchon in Paris

File:0 Frameries - Boulangerie-pâtisserie Godefroid (8).JPG|Bakers in Belgium using a machine to make éclairs

File:Eclair 1120005560.jpg|A classic éclair

File:Polish eclair from Poznan.jpg

File:Schubert's Bakery Chocolate Eclairs (27768570991).jpg

File:Lyon 2e - Hôtel-Dieu - Le Théodore - Éclair à la fraise.jpg

References

=Bibliography=

{{cite book |first=Jules |last=Gouffé |title=Le livre de pâtisserie |year= 1873 |url=http://gallica2.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k107860n |chapter= Deuxième Partie, Chapitre IX, "Pains à la duchesse au café"}}
{{cite book |first=Prosper |last=Montagné |title=Larousse Gastronomique, The Encyclopedia of Wine, Food & Cookery (English translation) |year= 1961}}